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High Court Eases Way
For Patent Challenges

By

Jess Bravin and

Marilyn Chase

Updated Jan. 10, 2007 12:01 a.m. ET

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court continued to reassert its oversight of patent law yesterday with a ruling that weakens intellectual-property protections by making it easier for legal challenges to patents.

The 8-1 decision put the justices on the side of those who have complained that existing rules stifle innovation, and it is their latest rebuke to the specialized panel that hears patent appeals, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, for rulings skewing property rights in favor of patent holders. The high...